An Israeli airstrike earlier this month killed top Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar while he was in a tunnel underneath a hospital in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli defense officials confirmed on Saturday evening, three days after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a similar announcement.

In a joint statement, the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security agency said they had confirmed that the May 13 strike on the grounds of the European Hospital in Khan Younis had killed Sinwar along with Muhammad Shabana, commander of the terror group’s Rafah Brigade, and Mahdi Quara, commander of the South Khan Younis Battalion.

“The terrorists were eliminated while operating in an underground command and control center under the European Hospital in Khan Younis, deliberately endangering the civilian population in and around the hospital,” the joint statement said.

Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal quoted Hamas and Arab officials as saying that the meeting of the top Hamas figures was convened to discuss their approach to talks on a ceasefire and hostage release deal, among other matters.

Presented with this opportunity, the Israeli Air Force immediately began preparing for a strike, though top officers expected it would likely be called off due to fears of harming hostages, which Sinwar reportedly kept close to him.

When solid intelligence arrived that no hostages were present near the senior commanders, the IAF was given the green light, jets were scrambled, and the bombing went ahead.

The IDF said it carried out “extensive........

© The Times of Israel